Now, Pactiv Evergreen wants a tax break
Pactiv Evergreen’s announcement that it would shutter its century-old paper mill was devastating enough for the tiny mountain town of…
Read More
Canton mill workers encouraged to explore health insurance options
Help is now available for Pactiv Evergreen Canton paper mill workers to determine how they can maintain health insurance after…
Read More
Employees, debt at forefront of Waynesville budget
There won’t be a tax increase, and there won’t be any borrowing from fund balance, but that doesn’t mean the…
Read More
Yellowhill Tribal Council candidates share their vision
FF Five candidates are running to earn a seat representing Yellowhill on Tribal Council 2023-2025, and the Primary Election Thursday,…
Read More
Amid changing times, Haywood budget seeks solid ground
Strong growth across multiple revenue streams will help Haywood County government balance increasing costs for staffing, schools and vehicles in…
Read More
Canton’s flood projects gaining momentum
The Town of Canton has made another big move toward recovery from Tropical Storm Fred by accepting advanced planning documents…
Read More
Waynesville looks to maintain its architectural, cultural legacy
It’s that small town feel — the Normal Rockwell-esque Main Street dimly lit by vintage streetlights, the brilliant fall colors…
Read More
Haywood event aims to shed stigma surrounding addiction
This weekend, The SHARE Project will host its third annual WNC drug awareness event — “Hope Not Stigma.”
Read More
Drug Trafficker pleads guilty in Haywood
A Swanannoa man forfeited his vehicle and received a stiff prison sentence after pleading guilty in Haywood County Superior Court…
Read More
Sylva approves brief road closure for Pride
An application to use Bridge Park and Main Street for the annual Pride event has led the Town of Sylva…
Read More
Sylva budgets for future uncertainty
Town Manager Paige Dowling officially presented the proposed 2023-24 budget to the Sylva Board of Commissioners during its May 11…
Read More
Sylva approves zoning request for workforce housing
Sylva has approved a zoning map amendment request in order to allow for the possible construction of an affordable housing…
Read More
Haywood commissioners support tax hike to fund school resource officers
Absent any meaningful gun legislation by the North Carolina General Assembly or by Congress, the cost of protecting Haywood County’s…
Read More
Old Kmart plaza sold
Less than two weeks after a story in The Smoky Mountain News revealed that a real estate marketing flyer along with…
Read More
Abortion bill will test Republican supermajority
It’s been a little over a year since a draft of the Dobbs v. Jackson ruling was leaked, and a…
Read More
Student wins WCU College of Business pitch competition
Avery Pittman, a first-year entrepreneurship and interior design major from Startown, won first place in the Western Carolina University College…
Read More
Meetings set to discuss Waynesville historic preservation
The Town of Waynesville Historic Preservation Commission will host a pair of public meetings to discuss the preparation of a…
Read More
Teen driver law changes take effect
Upon passage of a bill by the North Carolina General Assembly, the N.C. Division of Motor Vehicles announced changes to…
Read More
Man pleads guilty to child sex crimes
A South Carolina man who used social media to groom then entice an underage teen to meet him in both…
Read More
Car show reminds people to slow down and move over
Following her son’s death, a Haywood County mom is on a mission to get people to slow down and move…
Read More
Birdtown Tribal Council candidates share their vision
fF Five candidates are running for a term representing Birdtown on Tribal Council for the next two years.
Read More
Cannabis funding vetoed
UU Upholding a veto from Principal Chief Richard Sneed, on May 4 the Cherokee Tribal Council reversed an April decision…
Read More
DA finds Lambert Wilson shooting was self-defense
M More than six months after beloved Swain County educator was shot and killed at his motel in Cherokee, District…
Read More
Remembering the stolen: Gathering honors those lost to missing and murdered indigenous women epidemic
The fourth annual Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relative Walk and Vigil held in Cherokee Friday, May 5, aimed to do…
Read More
‘Cornerstone of the community’: HCC budgets for the coming year
Haywood Community College has long been a foundation of education and job training in the region; the college will celebrate…
Read More
Jackson approves juvenile crime prevention funding plan
Three Jackson County programs will receive funding from the Juvenile Crime Prevention Council to help reduce and prevent juvenile crime.
Read More
Chief vetoes cannabis enterprise funding
Following a veto from Principal Chief Richard Sneed, the Cherokee Tribal Council today reversed an April decision that allocated $64…
Read More
Persistent Pless pushes partisan polling play
Haywood Republican Rep. Mark Pless is closer than ever to getting partisan local elections in his district — part of…
Read More
Sylva considers sponsoring pride
The Town of Sylva has decided that only town-sponsored events can warrant closing Main Street. Now, the town board will…
Read More
Haywood seeks to ‘get ahead’ of cryptocurrency mining
The relatively recent rise of cryptocurrency, its associated strain on utility infrastructure and its potential to disrupt the peace and…
Read More
Search continues for missing man near Bryson City
Update: 4:47 p.m. Wednesday, May 3 The Great Smoky Mountains National Park has reduced the scale of the search for…
Read More
DEQ secretary visits Canton
During a visit to Canton Tuesday, May 2, N.C. Department of Environmental Quality Secretary Elizabeth Biser met with a room…
Read More
Waynesville changes name of governing board
The Town of Waynesville’s Board of Aldermen will now be known as the Town Council, after an April 25 vote…
Read More
Staggered terms adopted in Waynesville
This year’s election for seats on Waynesville’s Board of Aldermen — recently re-styled as “Town Council” — will proceed with…
Read More
Cherokee constitution effort faces hurdle
AA proposed constitution for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians is facing opposition from the EBCI Attorney General’s Office following…
Read More
HCS budgets for a changing school system
As Haywood County Schools hammered out its 2023-24 budget, administrators faced declining student population and the imminent end of COVID-era…
Read More
Wolfetown Tribal Council candidates share their vision
Six candidates are hoping to earn one of two seats in what is an extremely unusual election year for Wolfetown…
Read More
Confusion surrounds Higdon Property
At the April 24 meeting of the Macon County School Board, confusion surrounding the county’s intent to purchase the Higdon…
Read More
No charges filed in Lambert Wilson death
No criminal charges will be brought against a South Carolina resident who shot and killed Lambert Wilson last fall, according…
Read More
Multiple signs that Aldi is coming to Waynesville
A real estate marketing flyer along with correspondence between Waynesville’s Land Use Administrator Byron Hickox and an Asheville sign company…
Read More
Commissioner’s tax troubles go deeper than previously reported
New details from the Haywood County Tax Collector’s office show that Haywood Republican Commissioner Terry Ramey, who until recently hadn’t…
Read More
It’s an ‘honor system’ — public records statute has troubling gap
Across the state of North Carolina, the public’s right to know what its elected leaders are doing remains foundational to…
Read More
Painttown Tribal Council candidates share their vision
Six candidates are hoping to earn one of two seats up for election in this year’s race for Painttown Tribal…
Read More
Celebrate the Pigeon Center this Saturday
Once upon a time, the old school on Pigeon Street was a striking symbol of divisiveness and inequality.
Read More
GREAT Grant approved for Jackson
Last week, the Jackson County Commissioners approved a GREAT Grant agreement that will fund a project to connect more than…
Read More
Tribe adopts overdose tracking tool
The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians has become the first tribal nation to adopt a tool that gives real-time updates…
Read More
Sylva allows chickens
Residents in the Town of Sylva will be able to keep poultry in the downtown business district after commissioners voted…
Read More
Law enforcement rallies support for DWI bills
As the May 4 deadline for crossover approaches in the North Carolina General Assembly, a last-minute push has begun to…
Read More
A somber journey: After losing son over a decade ago, Waynesville man still seeks solace
The immediate grief of having to bury a child seems insurmountable, and the lifetime of what-ifs seem like enough to…
Read More
The show must go on: NC bill would ban drag in public
“I’d like to add one more thing,” Marigold Showers said. She is sitting with her back to the garage-style window…
Read More